Herne
Herne Stoneground spent his younger days as a traveling alchemist’s assistant. As he roamed from stronghold to stronghold learning his mentor’s trade, he became increasingly curious about the sciences involved in gunsmithing, cannoneering, and demolition. By his second decade he had already mastered the manufacture of double-barreled firearms, and his creations earned him a reputation among traders and military merchants alike. The Stoneground mark is hailed in some parts as a sign of the highest quality in firearms. Mistrustful of messengers, Herne has always insisted on delivering his wares personally. A Stoneground original can fetch a thousand Cygnaran crowns on the open market—and a select few sell at a much higher price behind closed doors—so Herne typically kept several bodyguards in his employ. That changed when he encountered a wellrespected ogrun named Jonne. Jonne was born and raised in Rhul, where for centuries most of his conclave have served as guards and smith hands for the Rhulfolk. Growing up quickly on the trade-rich border of Llael, Jonne became used to the flash and pomp of Llaelese merchants. It did not take long for the adolescent ogrun to make a name for himself on the Black River loading docks, where merchants came to ask for him by name. This slight taste of fame went right to Jonne’s head, and he soon signed on with a Rhulic mercenary group called the Emberhold. While in the company he practiced his martial skills and worked as a sword-for-hire for any who might be in need of his muscle. One day during the delivery of a pair of Stoneground originals to one such employer, Jonne met Herne Stoneground himself. A pair of ill-fated brigands picked that time to interrupt the sale. Moving instinctively, Jonne snatched up the two bandits and restrained them until the watch arrived. So fast was his reaction and effective his skill, the surrounding folk broke into applause as the ogrun handed over the brigands. Herne offered Jonne a lucrative contract on the spot, and from that day forth the two were fated to become one of the most famous mercenary teams in all the Iron Kingdoms. Though that was nearly fourteen years ago, Jonne remains bound to Herne in friendship built through many shared adventures. The ogrun has gone far beyond the call of duty for his charge by saving Herne time and again, and the dwarf feels safe under Jonne’s watchful eye. Though some less scrupulous employers might allow their hired muscle to perish in order to save their own skin, Herne would not think of it, leaping to aid his ogrun friend without thinking of his own safety. Some years ago, after months of Jonne’s grumbling, the duo agreed that small arms manufacturing was not the lucrative business it once had been and that true wealth lay in large ordnance. Herne put his mind and gunwerks skills to the task and soon unveiled the Stoneground barrage arquebus. In an effort to market the new creation, Herne and Jonne took to the road, hiring themselves out to potential customers in order to demonstrate the gun’s effectiveness firsthand. The arquebus, a triple-barreled contraption that launches three cannonballs at once, is a beautifully crafted weapon so massive that only the bulging muscles of Jonne—or “Arquebus Jonne,” as he has come to be called—can possibly hold it aloft. For his part, Herne uses his shrewd judgment and mathematical skill to help refine the weapon’s trajectories. With its weight and kick, the barrage arquebus is difficult to aim, but this shortcoming is balanced by its fragmenting ammunition. The arquebus is devastating at a respectable range, and Jonne is just as deadly in close combat with his mighty axe. Foes who survive the shelling long enough to close also risk facing Herne’s axe and pistol—neither of which he is reluctant to employ. Herne Stoneground and Arquebus Jonne have argued payment options with Khadoran kommandants, joined Cygnaran officers in after-battle victory toasts, and witnessed the prebattle prayers of Menite priests. They have earned a reputation as consummate professionals, and their fees are considered entirely reasonable for those in need of the kingdoms’ premier walking artillery platform.